Singing to the Lord
A Sermon on Singing from Ephesians 5:19
Originally preached Dec. 6, 1959
Scripture
19Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
Sermon Description
All worship that is truly Christian must have its final focus in the person and work of Christ Jesus the Son of God. In this sermon on singing from Ephesians 5:19 titled “Singing to the Lord,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones states that all who are truly Christians have been united to Christ and are beneficiaries of His death and resurrection by the regenerating and transforming power of the Holy Spirit who dwells in all who believe the gospel. It is only by the Spirit that any can come to a true and saving knowledge of Jesus and partake in the new life that He has provided in His death. Not only this, but Jesus Christ intercedes for all who believe interceding between people and God. Furthermore, Jesus Christ is the great prophet who reveals God and His will for the world. He serves as the final revelation of who God is and what He has done in His Son and through His Holy Spirit. This great person and work of Christ is the center of all Christianity, but this is the very heart of all true Christian worship. For the majesty and glory of Christ should compel and inspire all the children of God to sing and proclaim the praises of God now and forever.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Paul instructs Christians to speak to one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.
- The term “the Lord” refers to Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The Holy Spirit's work is to glorify the Son.
- Christians should test whether an experience is from the Holy Spirit by whether it leads to glorifying and worshipping Jesus.
- Christians can see Jesus in the Bible, which prompts singing and making melody in the heart.
- Christians should meditate on Jesus' glory, majesty, eternity and everlasting glory.
- Christians should consider the wonder of Jesus' incarnation, leaving heaven to dwell on earth. This should inspire singing.
- Christians should consider Jesus' life, obedience, humility, sympathy, compassion and perfection.
- Christians should consider Jesus as the great prophet, priest and king. This includes his authority, suffering, resurrection and ascension.
- Christians on earth are preparing to join in the song of praise to Jesus in heaven. Christians should start this song now.
- The sermon asks if Christians can say "amen" to praising Jesus as described. If so, they should encourage this by being filled with the Spirit and seeing Jesus in Scripture.
Sermon Q&A
Questions and Answers from Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Sermon on Ephesians 5:19
What is the central theme of worship according to Ephesians 5:19?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones' exposition of Ephesians 5:19, the central theme of Christian worship should be the Lord Jesus Christ. He emphasizes that Christians sing and make melody in their hearts "to the Lord." This is in contrast to worldly songs that focus on self or others. Dr. Lloyd-Jones states: "The Lord stands for the Lord Jesus Christ," and explains that this focus on Christ is the "supreme difference" between Christian and non-Christian gatherings.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones contrast worldly and Christian expressions of joy?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones contrasts worldly and Christian joy by pointing out that the world "is always singing about itself" through songs focused on self-glorification or praising one another in a "mutual admiration society." Christians, however, find their joy in singing about the Lord Jesus Christ. He explains that not only is the form different (psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs versus worldly ballads), but more importantly, "the very substance, the thing, the theme about which they are singing is different."
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the primary work of the Holy Spirit?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones identifies the primary work of the Holy Spirit as glorifying Christ. He references Jesus' own words: "He shall glorify me. He shall not speak of himself, but he shall glorify me." When someone is truly filled with the Spirit, they will inevitably be led to worship and praise Christ. This becomes a test of genuine spiritual experience: "The way always to test whether what we may think is the operation of the Holy Spirit upon us or not is just this. Does it lead us to worship and praise and desire to sing the glory of the Son?"
Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones believe Christians should focus on Christ rather than social issues?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that the church too often focuses on "talking about the Christian attitude towards this, that and the other, war and bombs and social conditions" while neglecting Christ Himself. He states, "Here's the center. And it's because the church doesn't know her Lord and marvel and be moved at the mystery of the incarnation that she counts for so little in the world." He believes that the world will never listen to Christ's teaching on specific matters until it first knows Him personally.
What aspects of Christ's person and work does Dr. Lloyd-Jones suggest should inspire our worship?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones identifies several aspects of Christ that should inspire worship: 1. The glory of His eternal person as God the Son 2. The wonder of His incarnation ("mild he lays his glory by") 3. His perfect life on earth (humility, compassion, understanding) 4. His perfect fulfillment of His offices as Prophet, Priest, and King 5. His suffering and death at Calvary 6. His resurrection and ascension 7. His current reign and future return in glory
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones describe the purpose of Christians singing about Christ now?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones describes our current worship as preparation for eternity: "We are in this world simply in a kind of singing rehearsal. We are all just being prepared for a mighty festival of music and of song." He refers to the heavenly worship described in Revelation where countless angels and all creation sing "Worthy is the Lamb." Our worship now is "tuning our voice" and "tuning our harp" to join this eternal chorus.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the remedy for spiritual dryness or joylessness?
For those who say "I don't feel like singing," Dr. Lloyd-Jones offers this remedy: "My dear friend, consider him until you do. Ask the Spirit so to reveal him until you can't keep silent." He suggests that spiritual joylessness comes from subjectivity—focusing too much on ourselves and our problems rather than on Christ. The remedy is to refocus on Christ through Scripture and allow the Spirit to reveal Him until praise becomes inevitable.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasize the eternal nature of praise to Christ?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasizes that our praise of Christ is unending, citing a Welsh hymn that says even "after the millennia have passed and have passed and have passed, they're only starting, they're only beginning to sing his praise." He states we "can only begin this heavenly theme" and quotes Revelation's description of heavenly worship where "ten thousand times ten thousand" angels join with all creation in an eternal chorus of praise to Christ.
The Book of Ephesians
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.